Post-operative ComplicationsAll symptoms below (except flap striae) were introduced during the first surgery. Neither the second nor third "enhancement" surgeries corrected any symptom below, with the exception of dry eyes which have slowly improved over 4-5 years.

Symptom

Cause

Suspected medical error

Is this symptom common?

Halos around light sources in low-light

Ablation smaller than pupil (5.5mm vs 8.5mm)

Surgeon didn't measure pupils accurately

No, unless pupil diameter > 7mm

Loss of contrast

Epithelium / Stroma Haze

Unknown

Unknown

Polyopia (multiple images)

Central islands (irregular astigmatism)

Laser didn't use scanning technology

Happens in ~5% of LASIK patients

Flap striae (folds)

Tenting, wrinkling,

Surgical error?

Happens in ~3% of LASIK patients

Hyperopia (Farsightedness) in R. eye

Overcorrection

Surgical error, and/or healing problem

Happens in ~3% of LASIK patients

Moderately dry eyes (until 2003)

Unknown

Unknown

Yes

Condition 1 year after first surgery (November 1999)

Refraction:

OD: +1.25 spherical, -2.25 cylindrical

OS: +0.75 spherical, -1.75 cylindrical

Comments:

Moderate farsightedness on R eye with moderate and irregular astigmatism

Uncorrected, I have 20/25 in the left and 20/80 in the right

With correction (glasses) I have about 20/25 in both eyes

I need glasses to drive

I need glasses to read for more than about 2 minutes

Have been told I cannot use soft contact lenses any longer due to LASIK procedure reshaping my cornea

1. One reason my halos are so obnoxious at night is because I endured (or have) all the possible causes mentioned on LASIK Disaster2. I was told my irregular astigmatism (which is only partially corrected by wearing glasses now) could be helped by contacts but I don't want them because:

Wearing contacts was what I was trying to avoid by persuing LASIK(!!)

I'm not as irritated by it as I once was (I'm adapting mentally)

Condition 4 years after first surgery (November 2002)

Refraction:

OD: +1.25 spherical, -2.50 x 25 cylindrical

OS: +0.75 spherical, -1.75 x 5 cylindrical

Comments:

More on halo-risk from big pupils on Surgical Eyes:"Patients with refractive errors greater than -4D and scotopic pupils 8 mm or larger are contraindicated for 6-mm-zone excimer surgery…The onus is on the surgeon to choose the right patient…Not screening for these patients preoperatively is a critical oversight on the part of the surgeon because these complications cannot be remedied with currently available refractive techniques."...Stephen Trokel, MD, Enlargement of the PRK Optical Zone, Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery, 11/96. Peter Hersh, Jack Holladay, Corneal Optical Irregularity After Excimer Laser PRK, Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, 3/96. Gregory Klonos, MD, John Pallikaris, MD, A Computer Model for Predicting Image Quality after PRK, Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, 2/96. Yair Alster, Anat Loewenstein, Tami Baumwald, Isaac Lipshits, Moshe Lazar, Dapiprazole for Patients with Night Haloes After Excimer Keratectomy, Graefe’s Arch. Clin. Exp. Ophthalmol, Vol. 234, 2/96, S139-S141.

Adjusting to these defects has taken time, but my brain has somewhat adapted to the injury (what choice does it have?) and I'm learning to cope.

I've been contacted by ~6 people in 2003 who've asked me whether they should have LASIK performed and I caution them to (1) find the right surgeon and (2) only proceed if they feel they can no longer live with their current, corrected vision because it's a precious gift that cannot be restored easily.

I've learned to cope, and I try not to re-live the experience, and mental pain of LASIK.

I've finally stopped focusing on LASIK, my woes and loss, and am moving on with my life.

In Dec-2004, I was contacted by a fellow LASIK patient, Marianne, who had similar complications. While speaking with here, I sent her this "consolation":

I have been where you are.

It's lonely because doctors, family and friends don't reallyknow what you're seeing and feeling. But you can find some peace in knowing we're luckier than others (e.g. blind people). Remember we're all born with (and quickly and unconsciously learned to live with) our limited five senses. For example, we can only hear 20Hz-20kHz of the sound spectrum, and we can only see 400nm-700nm of a vast spectrum of light. What you don't have now, you don't really need. Let your brain adapt.

You must consciously adapt to your new limitation. You can do it. It's tough because we're all hard-wired to protect (and fix) ourselves to survive and prosper. So our brain clings to problems it finds. Let go, focus elsewhere, and you might feel less frustrated. Keep yourself distracted.

I'm not apologizing for imperfect medical or legal systems. In fact, I was angry for three years and fought to understand and prosecute those who wronged me. But eventually we learn we have to spend our time elsewhere, and that will help brain to adapt to the new limitation in eyesight.

Epilogue

I am dissatisfiedwith the outcome of all three surgical procedures because:

None of the surgeries delivered what each surgeon indicated.

Each surgery introduced complications difficult to correct.

My pupils were not measured properly and I have halos caused by a relatively small ablation zone. It is thought that this will be likely never be correctable.

My post-operative best-corrected-vision is worse than my pre-op with lenses. Only 1% of LASIK patients shares this condition.

My gift of eyesight has been permanently damaged, due to voluntary surgery and imperfect medicine.

The good news is that I'm not a "horror case" who needs a corneal transplant or is legally blind. Nonetheless, I wish I'd never had these surgeries.

Looking Ahead

I hope someday a topographically-linked laser can help me. But even when solutions such as these are claimed to be effective, I'll hesitate to use them, as I have learned to distrust the medical community; especially any for-profit professionals. I avoid thinking about this topic, because I become frustrated, angry and depressed. Instead, I am moving on, and trying to forget this piece of my past.